Neither Natalie Portman nor Julianne Moore shy away from films with controversial topics. Director Todd Haynes gives them one he intended to be uncomfortable and their performances are spot on. It harkens back to a 1997 real news story about Mary Kay Letourneau who became involved with her young male student and went to prison for it.
Well-known actress, Elizabeth Berry (Portman) comes to an affluent Georgia community to study Gracie (Moore), the woman who bed down a middle school student, and served time in prison for sex with an underage child, even though she married him. She is now a registered sex offender for life. Gracie is beautiful, seemingly popular in her community, but a tainted woman. But she also has a baking business she foists upon her neighbors to order on a regular basis for income.
Joe, (Charles Melton) is now 36 and the father of three girls with Gracie, two of them twins about to go off to college. Gracie’s son Georgie Atherton (Cory Michael Smith) from her first marriage, completes the blended family living together in a magnificent home on a lake. But now, on the brink of becoming empty nesters, Gracie treats her mate more like her servant, to do whatever she tells him to do. And when he gets amorous, she spurns him.
This is screenwriter Samy Burch’s first screenplay, and she captures the personalities of the characters in a script that has a number of humorously strange moments and situations that are worth nervous laughter. Gracie and Elizabeth are outrageous women. Gracie is a little wacky, but not someone you would have thought would stray outside the norms of sexual behavior.
Elizabeth comes to town ostensibly to research her role as Gracie, but she wants more. She learns her mannerisms and speech (a slight lisp) but she really wants to rummage around inside her head and get close to those close to her. At first, their relationship is tentative, but as they get to know each other, they see similarities.
Three scenes stand out revealing exactly who these people are. The one where Gracie and Elizabeth are both looking at the camera as if they are looking in a mirror, talking as they are primping to go out together, with some pointed remarks along the way. Haynes has their personalities shine through.
The other scene is when Portman, once again, looks straight into the camera and delivers a monologue, this time as Gracie, with her mannerisms and even her lisp. It’s a long speech that Portman does in one perfect take which is somewhat disturbing to watch. The third scene is Elizabeth finding a way to get as close as she can to Joe, to find out how close he feels now about Gracie. The realization of life with just Gracie in the house is making him re-evaluate everything.
Somehow Gracie tries to justify everything she’s done as rational and normal, down to influencing her daughters pick of a graduation dress. She even gives a scale to the daughter going to college so she’ll watch her weight. And Elizabeth is getting perverse pleasure injecting herself into it all. There’s more than a little uncomfortable humor in this script. Brought to life with sharp performances from Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, Todd Haynes’ direction of Samy Burch’s writing is one guilty pleasure.
Netflix 1 Hour 53 Minutes R
Related posts:
Knives Out Writer/Director Rian Johnson talks about having the whole cast on the set
Ford v Ferrari Stunt Coordinator, Robert Nagle
Interview with Waves stars Kelvin Harrison, Jr., Taylor Russell and Writer/Director Trey Edward Shults talking teen angst, family and sound design.
THE CAMPERS AT THE SUNDANCE PREMIERE OF CRIP CAMP: A DISABILITY REVOLUTION TALK ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE AND THE FILM.
Vox Lux
Eddie Redmayne and Tom Harper talk challenges making The Aeronauts
